Effects of a large-scale program for the construction of daycare and preschool centers on cognitive skills and female employment.

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Title: Effects of a large-scale program for the construction of daycare and preschool centers on cognitive skills and female employment.
Authors: Castro, Marcelo1 marcelo.castro@ufu.br, da Cruz, Breno1
Source: Education Economics. Dec2024, Vol. 32 Issue 6, p786-811. 26p.
Subject Terms: *Day care centers, *Cognitive Strategy Instruction, *Higher education, *Postsecondary education, *Elementary schools
Abstract: This paper assesses the impacts of a large-scale program aimed at constructing daycare and preschool centers in Brazil named Proinfância, which funded new buildings in nearly 45% of the municipalities between 2008 and 2017. We find a significant increase in early education care in the jurisdictions that participated in the program more than a decade after it had started: 4 percentage points in the attendance rate for infants aged up to three and six percentage points for children aged 4 to 5. However, the improvements in public schools' scores in 'Prova Brasil', which is a national exam for elementary school children, are small (at most 1%). Despite this, the program significantly helped increase female labor force participation, especially considering low-educated workers, but also with a small magnitude (1 percentage point). The results suggest that a faster increase in the coverage of public infant education would lead to more pronounced effects on children's development and female participation in the workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Abstract:This paper assesses the impacts of a large-scale program aimed at constructing daycare and preschool centers in Brazil named Proinfância, which funded new buildings in nearly 45% of the municipalities between 2008 and 2017. We find a significant increase in early education care in the jurisdictions that participated in the program more than a decade after it had started: 4 percentage points in the attendance rate for infants aged up to three and six percentage points for children aged 4 to 5. However, the improvements in public schools' scores in 'Prova Brasil', which is a national exam for elementary school children, are small (at most 1%). Despite this, the program significantly helped increase female labor force participation, especially considering low-educated workers, but also with a small magnitude (1 percentage point). The results suggest that a faster increase in the coverage of public infant education would lead to more pronounced effects on children's development and female participation in the workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:09645292
DOI:10.1080/09645292.2023.2254516